Financial Stocks Pare Day-Long Declines

January 31, 2017January 31, 2017Karen Smith

Financial stocks improved from their mid-day lows but still fell Tuesday after the U.S. markets extended their decline and the Federal Open Markets Committee began two days of interest-rate talks. The NYSE Financial Sector Index dropped 0.3% while financial companies in the S&P 500 Index sank nearly 0.6%.

In company news, Pathfinder Bancorp (PBHC) shares rose to their best price in other two years on Tuesday after the the holding company reported improved Q4 earnings and revenues from the year-ago quarter.

The company earned $0.23 per share during the three months ended Dec. 31 compared with an $0.18 per share profit during the same quarter last year.

Q4 revenue rose about 6.7% over year-ago levels to $6.4 million from $6 million last year. Analyst estimates were not available for comparison.

PBHC shares were up nearly 3% in late trade at $14.40 apiece, retracing much of an earlier climb to their highest level since October 2014 at $14.49 a share earlier today.